banished from memory. moreover, banished with dishonor. damnatio memoriae... this phrase i heard in the book i am currently listening to describes what is pretty much the exact opposite of the purpose of memorial day, which is today. today we remember, with honor... we purposefully, intentionally call to memory patriots who have served in defense of our country and venerate their memory. damnatio memoriae is dishonorable banishment of a traitor along with all traces of his memory.
but, take away the dishonour for a minute. i think you can call for a memory to be banished without calling down dishonor upon it. i mean, maybe it's a painful memory, but not a bad one. maybe by nature of being a memory - in the past, not a current thing - maybe that makes it painful (but not bad).
so, it's painful (but not bad) and so you just want to banish the memory. you just don't want it anymore. you can't use it, don't need it, have no purpose for it, and it's hanging around like an albatross. but oh-so-typical of the human brain, you can't remember your dentist appointment, but you can't forget the birthday of your dead mother.
damn memory.
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